Apple Watch Revisited ⇥ caseyliss.com

Casey Liss:

I really like my Apple Watch. I wouldn’t go so far as to say I love it, but I like it enough that I don’t plan to stop wearing it anytime soon. I’m very curious to see what the next revision brings to the table wrist. I don’t suspect I’ll be itching to upgrade… until I hear how much thinner and faster it is. (In this case, Apple should be trying to make things thinner.)

And, I would argue, faster — a device that’s supposed to be used in bursts of seconds at a time shouldn’t contradict that with slow loading times.

I’ve worn my Watch every day since I received it in June, and I’ve found it both fun and useful, despite it not being essential. I swam with it in Bali, and cycled with it in Calgary; I’ve responded to texts and calls while cooking or washing dishes, and set timers while doing the same; I’m also more aware of my daily physical activity. I’ve spent less time directly on my phone as I know which emails and texts I need to deal with now versus those that can wait.

After spending that kind of time with it, I’ve realized just how much I like it. It’s occasionally frustrating in the way a first-generation product often is,¹ but it’s well-considered overall, in the way that Apple seems to excel at.

If I were to rewind to June, would I click the “buy” button again? Absolutely. I might have even sprung for the stainless steel model, though I’m not sure I would have gone too far up the pricing brackets — the Sport Band really is that nice.

I’m not sure whether I’m upgrading to the second generation next year, largely because I’ve no idea what it will bring. But next year’s model doesn’t have to convince me and the other early adopters to drop $400+ on the latest model; its job will be to further convince those who are on the fence that it’s a valuable, if inessential, device.